xpatofthemind
So many great things are going on all at once in this album! On the smooth side of the “Downtown” sound a la Jessica Lurie—in a very good way! There are also some Maria Schneider modern classical feels in there as well. One of my favorite recent new jazz releases.
Favorite track: City Suite: 1. The Big Apple.
City Suite is an ambitious debut album by New York-based Korean composer and conductor Rin Seo. Influenced by diverse musical genres such as classical, jazz, and Korean folk, her music seamlessly blends eclectic musical idioms, blurring the boundaries between genres with her distinctive music voice. To bring her compositional vision to life, Seo carefully assembled the Rin Seo Collective, a 14-piece ensemble that combines the beauty of jazz and orchestral textures.
This recording reflects Seo’s impressions of New York City, where she chose to pursue her dreams. The work features a range of emotions including ambition, struggle, isolation, nostalgia, and solidarity provoked by urban life. In addition, this album encapsulates her decade-long musical and life journey living in the United States.
credits
released October 3, 2025
Rin Seo composer, conductor
Steve Wilson piccolo, flute, soprano sax, alto sax
Ethan Helm soprano sax, alto sax (track 4)
Dan Pratt flute, clarinet, tenor sax
Andrew Gutauskas clarinet, bass clarinet, baritone sax
John Lake trumpet
Ingrid Jensen trumpet (track 5, 8)
Adam Unsworth horn
Nick Grinder trombone
Joyce Hammann violin (except track 3, 7)
Sita Chay violin (except track 3)
Orlando Wells viola (except track 3)
Jody Redhage Ferber cello (except track 3)
Sebastian Noelle guitar
Adam Birnbaum piano
Matt Clohesy contrabass
Jared Schonig drum set, percussion
Produced by Alan Ferber and Rin Seo
Associate Producer: Jongyool Lee
Session Assistant: Joseph Herbst
Engineered and Mixed by Brian Montgomery
Assistant Engineer: Matthew Sullivan
Recorded at the Power Station NYC on September 18-19, 2024
Mastered by Dave Darlington
Executive Producer: Cory Weeds, Rin Seo, Jongyool Lee
Production Manager: Dominic Duchamp
Session Photographer: Anna Yatskevich
Album Cover Photographer: Haseok Chung
Design and layout by Tilda Hedwig
